--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Time is a funny thing. It can take some…" description: "\"“Time is a funny thing. It can take some people a whole lifetime before they realize they've been playing tug-of-war all by themselves.”\" — Karen White" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d4/karen-white-8183_clock_time-is-a-funny-thing-it-can-take-some-p_1229701.jpg" --- # Time is a funny thing. It can take some people a whole… ![“Time is a funny thing. It can take some people a whole lifetime before they realize they've been playing tug-of-war all by themselves.” quote by Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d4/karen-white-8183_clock_time-is-a-funny-thing-it-can-take-some-p_1229701.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d4/karen-white-8183_clock_time-is-a-funny-thing-it-can-take-some-p_1229701.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d4/karen-white-8183_clock_time-is-a-funny-thing-it-can-take-some-p_1229701.jpg) > ““Time is a funny thing. It can take some people a whole lifetime before they realize they've been playing tug-of-war all by themselves.”” [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Time often passes unnoticed until we realize we have been struggling alone. **In simple terms:** We may not notice our own solitary struggles. Key Takeaway Recognize and address personal battles early. Themes self-awareness loneliness reflection Mood contemplative melancholic Type reflective philosophical When to use this quote - personal growth - mental health - relationships Key Concepts psychology time perception Questions to Reflect On - How can you become aware of your own solitary struggles? - What steps can you take to seek support? A Different Perspective People may ignore signs of isolation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Clock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clock/) [Funny thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny-thing/) [Lifetime Realize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifetime-realize-3539039/) [People Lifetime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-lifetime-1099935/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Time Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-funny/) ## Related quotes > [“Time's a funny thing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandt-legg/time-s-a-funny-thing/) [Brandt Legg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandt-legg/) > [“Our brains are our greatest treasures that we have in our life. But it takes a lifetime to realize this.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avijeet-das/our-brains-are-our-greatest-treasures-that-we-have-in-our-life-but-it/) [Avijeet Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avijeet-das/) > [Institutions need a lifetime to realize their potential.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roshni-nadar/institutions-need-a-lifetime-to-realize-their-potential/) [Roshni Nadar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roshni-nadar/) > [“everything. If you are lucky, you meet four or five people in a lifetime who you’re totally comfortable with. Comfortable in a way that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-harpham/everything-if-you-are-lucky-you-meet-four-or-five-people-in-a/) [Heather Harpham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-harpham/) > [Never mix seasonal people up with lifetime expectations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/never-mix-seasonal-people-up-with-lifetime-expectations/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Grant people a lifetime of forgiveness before you even meet them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-leonard/grant-people-a-lifetime-of-forgiveness-before-you-even-meet-them/) [Thomas Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-leonard/) > [It took most people a lifetime to join the human race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hortense-calisher/it-took-most-people-a-lifetime-to-join-the-human-race/) [Hortense Calisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hortense-calisher/) > [In your career, to walk away champion of the Greatest Royal Rumble would be something people will take with them for a lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samoa-joe/in-your-career-to-walk-away-champion-of-the-greatest-royal-rumble/) [Samoa Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samoa-joe/) > [I think few people in their lifetime have the chance to be involved in something like the creation of Microsoft - that's always going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-allen/i-think-few-people-in-their-lifetime-have-the-chance-to-be-involved/) [Paul Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-allen/) > [We are so many different people in one lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-lawrenson/we-are-so-many-different-people-in-one-lifetime/) [Deborah Lawrenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-lawrenson/) > [“Musicians are some of the most driven, courageous people on the face of the earth. They deal with more day-to-day rejection in one year…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ackert/musicians-are-some-of-the-most-driven-courageous-people-on-the-face/) [David Ackert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ackert/) > [I've achieved more than some people do in a lifetime, but it doesn't mean I've done it all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-taylor-johnson/i-ve-achieved-more-than-some-people-do-in-a-lifetime-but-it-doesn-t/) [Aaron Taylor-Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-taylor-johnson/) > [Time has a funny way of airbrushing relationships, removing all the things that were wrong so when you look back it looks much better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-potter/time-has-a-funny-way-of-airbrushing-relationships-removing-all-the/) [Alexandra Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-potter/) > [I don’t think men have time to be funny because they have to make all of our rules about what we can do with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-slate/i-don-t-think-men-have-time-to-be-funny-because-they-have-to-make-all/) [Jenny Slate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-slate/) > [Doing actual comedic material is just about the most joyful endeavor ever. That's the truth. The only time it's not funny is when business…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-louis-dreyfus/doing-actual-comedic-material-is-just-about-the-most-joyful-endeavor/) [Julia Louis-Dreyfus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-louis-dreyfus/) ## More by Karen White > [“If tears could build a stairway and memories a lane, I'd walk back up to Heaven and bring you home again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/if-tears-could-build-a-stairway-and-memories-a-lane-i-d-walk-back-up/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [Adversity in life does not rob your heart of beauty. It simply teaches it a new song to sing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/adversity-in-life-does-not-rob-your-heart-of-beauty-it-simply-teaches/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [“Some are called to be gardeners of souls, and she'd tended hers with the blind dedication that accepted the floods and famine along with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/some-are-called-to-be-gardeners-of-souls-and-she-d-tended-hers-with/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [“Every woman should have a daughter to tell her stories to. Otherwise, the lessons learned are as useless as spare buttons from a discarded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/every-woman-should-have-a-daughter-to-tell-her-stories-to-otherwise/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [“It's good to be a little nervous. God compensates those with a lack of talent with an overabundance of self-confidence. -Gigi”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/it-s-good-to-be-a-little-nervous-god-compensates-those-with-a-lack-of/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [“It bonded us. Branded us as best friends. Because I will always remember that when I told her I needed help burying a body,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/it-bonded-us-branded-us-as-best-friends-because-i-will-always/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [“I looked around the garden, the sun feeling warm on my back. "So why are you here? I would think you'd want to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/i-looked-around-the-garden-the-sun-feeling-warm-on-my-back-so-why-are/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [Every woman needs a daughter to tell her stories to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/every-woman-needs-a-daughter-to-tell-her-stories-to/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [Sometimes we make decisions because it seems to be the only path visible at the moment. It's only later that we see there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/sometimes-we-make-decisions-because-it-seems-to-be-the-only-path/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [“Love is all about sacrifices—big and small ones. It’s only when you know how much you could give up for somebody that you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/love-is-all-about-sacrifices-big-and-small-ones-it-s-only-when-you/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [“Jude says it's because that's the way I look at life\_ it's so much more exciting when you don't know what's on the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/jude-says-it-s-because-that-s-the-way-i-look-at-life-it-s-so-much/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [“...hearing again the words from the Gullah woman, All shut-eye ain't sleep; all good-bye ain't gone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/hearing-again-the-words-from-the-gullah-woman-all-shut-eye-ain-t/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [Sometimes I guess you need to lose everything before you realize what's really important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/sometimes-i-guess-you-need-to-lose-everything-before-you-realize-what/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [“The golden moments īn the stream of life rush past us and we see nothing but sand; The angels come to visit us, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/the-golden-moments-n-the-stream-of-life-rush-past-us-and-we-see/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [“let the story go, and still clutched F. Scott Fitzgerald’s This Side of Paradise in my arms as if to let it go would”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/let-the-story-go-and-still-clutched-f-scott-fitzgerald-s-this-side-of/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) [Explore all 82 Karen White quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) ## More Clock quotes > [Even Einstein had to rely for his time on his clock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanislaw-jerzy-lec/even-einstein-had-to-rely-for-his-time-on-his-clock/) [Stanislaw Jerzy Lec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanislaw-jerzy-lec/) > [“Time was never neutral and often felt dangerous. We either think we have all the time in the world or time moves too fast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-reay/time-was-never-neutral-and-often-felt-dangerous-we-either-think-we/) [Katherine Reay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-reay/) > [Before a clock was in the tower, Or e'er a watch was worn; I knew of night the passing hour, And prophesied the morn;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/before-a-clock-was-in-the-tower-or-e-er-a-watch-was-worn-i-knew-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A clock struck out the hour of twelve, and the bird in the hedgerow was still singing as we marched out to the roadway,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-macgill/a-clock-struck-out-the-hour-of-twelve-and-the-bird-in-the-hedgerow/) [Patrick MacGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-macgill/) > [“Time is, to put it in its most impressive and some might say poncy-sounding form, my domain. I can see things that once happened,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-rayner/time-is-to-put-it-in-its-most-impressive-and-some-might-say-poncy/) [Jacqueline Rayner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-rayner/) > [Time travel offends our sense of cause and effect - but maybe the universe doesn't insist on cause and effect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-m-lerner/time-travel-offends-our-sense-of-cause-and-effect-but-maybe-the/) [Edward M. Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-m-lerner/) > [My only aim is to clock a time that everyone remembers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hima-das/my-only-aim-is-to-clock-a-time-that-everyone-remembers/) [Hima Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hima-das/) > [Time.The greatest creator, and the worst destroyer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/levi-keely/time-the-greatest-creator-and-the-worst-destroyer/) [Levi Keely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/levi-keely/) > [Steven Spielberg seems to have wanted to be a director from 13. He put his dog in a certain position and made him eat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-brooks/steven-spielberg-seems-to-have-wanted-to-be-a-director-from-13-he-put/) [Albert Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-brooks/) > [No life goes past so swiftly as an eventless one, no clock spins like a clock whose days are all alike.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/no-life-goes-past-so-swiftly-as-an-eventless-one-no-clock-spins-like/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [Those who stop marketing to save money are like those who stop a clock to save time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/those-who-stop-marketing-to-save-money-are-like-those-who-stop-a/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [Time is the nervous system of narration, whether factual or fictive. If it gets confused some of the minutiae of human nature are certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenway-wescott/time-is-the-nervous-system-of-narration-whether-factual-or-fictive-if/) [Glenway Wescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenway-wescott/) > [I don't know if it's just me or everyone, but the whole vibe with skiing is not so much thriving on competition against others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/picabo-street/i-don-t-know-if-it-s-just-me-or-everyone-but-the-whole-vibe-with/) [Picabo Street](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/picabo-street/) > [Time goes on, even when yer not looking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/time-goes-on-even-when-yer-not-looking/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [CLOCK, n. A machine of great moral value to man, allaying his concern for the future by reminding him what a lot of time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/clock-n-a-machine-of-great-moral-value-to-man-allaying-his-concern/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) [Browse all 2,738 Clock quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clock/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Time is a funny thing. 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